GV 1133 
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RULES FOR BOXING 



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ISSUED BY THE 



WAR DEPARTMENT COMMISSION ON 
TRAINING CAMP ACTIVITIES 




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Washington 

GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 

191S 



RULES FOR BOXING 



ISSUED BY THE 



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WAR DEPARTMENT ^COMMISSION ON 

TRAINING CAMP ACTIVITIES CLooui o e flf) 




WASHINGTON 
GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 

1918 



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THE VALUE OF BOXING 

IN 

MILITARY TRAINING. 



The object of teaching boxing in the Army is to make " head 
up and eyes open," two-fisted figliting men, rather than expert 
boxers and ring fighters. Therefore the instruction of the mass — 
and not of a few individuals — is of prime importance. Work for 
the largest number of men in the shortest possible time. Elim- 
inate the " frills " and fancy work and do your best to get the 
men to fight aggressively and effectively. Six standard blows 
are sufficient. A straight left, well delivered and backed up by 
aggressive American determination, is a Boche eliminant in nine 
cases out of ten. 

The big contribution of boxing to military training is to de- 
velop in men the w^illingness and ability to fight at close range. 
Its purpose is to teach soldiers to give and take punishment. 
There is a close relation in the qualities required for boxing and 
bayonet fighting. Both require agility of body, quickness' of 
eye, good balance, and control in giving a punch or thrust, and 
an aggressive fighting spirit that breaks down or weakens de- 
fense, and makes openings for an effective ** finish." 

An efficient fighting soldier must not only be trained in the 
technique of offense and defense, but must be " charged " with 
the proper fighting spirit. We are dealing with men who are 
strangers in the main to personal combats of any nature, and it 
is toward this class of soldiers that the major portion of 
athletic .and boxing activities should be directed. Forward 
action and aggressiveness in bayonet fighting is essential. Ag- 
gressive action in boxing tends to the same end and should be 
given due credit in the judging of contests. 

Boxing practice will build up ** the habit of consecutive action," 
i. e., the ability to sense an opening and take immediate advan- 
tage of it without thinking and without hesitation. The prac- 
tical application of this faculty to the exigencies of hand to hand 
conflict and trench attacks is obvious. " Open " rather than 
*' inside " fighting should be encouraged. 
76674—18 



(2) 



LC Control Number 




D. of ©. 

OCT 23 1918 .^96 026233 



3 

The importance of systematic boxing bouts tlirougliout the 
camps should not be underestimated, and contests of this sort 
should be encouraged to a rational extent. Bear in mind always 
that the success of your work is gauged by the number of men 
who engage in this direct competition and who thus develop, 
through practice, that confidence and fighting spirit that will 
become so much a part of them that they will be found avail- 
able in the excitement of actual combat. 

Boxing rules throughout the country vary in accordance with 
the professional or amateur viewpoint. Those commonly in use 
in civil life are so formulated as to permit or put a premium 
/ upon " covering up," clinching to avoid punishment, hanging on, 

stalling, and like evasions of punishment. These features in 
, the generally accepted codes are handicaps in the work of 
developing cleverness and fast aggressive work. 

Boxing instructors in various camps have modified the com- 
monly accepted rules of boxing contests in an attempt to correct 
these deficiencies. These modifications have been along the 
right line and have had a good effect, but in view of the still 
existing differences it has seemed wise to draw up a set of 
regulations which will standardize the practice in boxing and 
will emphasize those points that are most valuable in the de- 
velopment of military qualities. 

The following code is formulated to encourage the type of 
fighting that is most valuable as a preparation for a serious 
fight and to prevent the development of habits that are not 
only useless from a boxing standpoint but are a source of posi- 
tive danger in a real hand-to-hand contest. 

Physical aggressiveness, to be effective, must be based upon 
intelligent thought and practice. The sensing of an opening 
and the following blows must come close together. Habit is 
the result of repeated efforts, physical or mental. Hence the 
necessity of a simple, intensive schedule of instruction. Such 
a program, to produce mass uniformity, must be simple and 
graded so that it can be readily grasped by the least efficient 
members of your unit. 

Supervise your boxing contests so that a stinging blow or 
defeat may be used as a stimulus for self-bettterment. Keep in 
mind constantly that all of this is for one purpose alone — namely, 
to make a first-class fighting man. 

Joseph E. Raycroft, 
Chairman Athletic Division, War Department, 

Commission on Training Camp Activities. 



The Commission wishes to give formal expression of its 
hearty appreciation of the valuable services rendered by 
the boxing instructors in the camps. 

They have done a very valuable piece of work, and they 
have shown a fine spirit of unselfishness in placing their 
knowledge and experience at the disposal of the soldier 
in training. 

These boxing rules owe much to their advice and co- 
operation. 



It is strongly recommended that all boxing contests 
and exhibitions shall be under the direction of the ath- 
letic director and boxing instructor and that a medical 
officer shall be present. 



(4) 



OFFICIAL CAMP BOXING RULES 

AS RECOMMENDED BY 

WAR DEPARTMENT COMMISSION ON TRAINING 
CAMP ACTIVITIES. 



PRELIMINARY TO THE BOUTS. 

The tone and spirit of a boxing contest or tournament depend 
a great deal upon the proper disposition of certain preliminary 
preparations which are essential to the conduct and control of 
any athletic exhibition. A high grade of competition can never 
entirely compensate for the mismanagement of ring details. 
Boxing is too important a factor in the training of the soldier 
to be spoiled by failure to procure competent officials and to 
provide other essential details in ample time to insure a smooth- 
running organization. 

It is strongly recommended by the Commission on Training 
Camp Activities that the athletic director and boxing instructor 
follow a regular procedure which will automatically apply to all 
boxing bouts which may be held in the camps, as follows : 

(1) Procure the necessary authority for the contest, date of 
meeting, and place. (Not less than one week prior to contests.) 

(2) Entries — ^where made, when closed, classes, drawings. 

(3) Publicity — camp and public. 

(4) Officials — referee, judges, clerks, medical ofBcer, and timer. 
Secure in ample time before contest. 

(5) Ring equipment — watch, gong, or whistle. Buckets, dress- 
ing quarters, etc., chairs, gloves, towels. Be sure everything is 
on hand. 

(6) Management of audience. 

(a) Building assistants. 

(&) Policing — doorkeepers, ushers. 

(c) Programs. 

(d) Sale of tickets. 

(e) Seating. 

All the foregoing details can be handled with a minimum of 
difficulty if they are considered in time. 

(5) 



6 

Competent officials are essential. It is always a good plan to 
establish a representative corps of officials in each camp. The 
membership in such an organization of boxing officials should 
depend upon their past experience in boxing and their ability 
to officiate. An advisory body of officers could readily be as- 
sembled to pass on the merits of each novice official. The serv- 
ices of skilled officials insures nonpartisan judgment, and com- 
mands the confidence of the competitors and spectators. 



RULE I. 

EQUIPMENT. 
Ring dimensions. 

Section 1. The boxing ring shall be not less than 16 feet nor 
more than 20 feet square. 
Extension of ring. 

Sec. 2. The floor of the ring shall extend beyond the lower 
ropes for a distance of not less than 2 feet. 
Posts. 

Sec. 3. There shall be at least four posts, properly padded. 
Ropes. 

Sec. 4. The ring shall be inclosed by at least three rope rails 
with cloth wrappings. 
Padding. 

Sec. 5. The ring floor, if of wood or other hard substance, shall 
be padded at least 1 inch thick with corrugated paper, matting, 
felt, or other soft material. 

Note. — A very good padding for an outdoor ring is damp- 
ened sawdust covered with tight canvas. 

RULE II. 

Ring during progress of match 

Section 1. During the progress of a contest the ring shall be 
cleared of all chairs, buckets, etc. 
Clear ring. 

Sec 2. No person other than the contestants and the referee 
shall during the progress of the contest enter or be in the ring. 

RULE III. 

BOXING GLOVES. 
Gloves. 

Section 1. Gloves are to be of the pattern issued by the Com- 
mission and shall weigh not less than — 
(a) Ten ounces in all " novice " contests. 



(h) Eight ounces in all " trained men " bouts, except in divi- 
sional championship bouts, in which either 6 or 8 ounce gloves 
may be used. 



( 



Sec. 2. Bandages nuist not be worn on hands except by direc- 
tion of medical officer. Any bandages permitted shall be of soft 
material and not heavy enough to add force to a blow. 

RULE ly. 

SHOES. 

Spikes and cleats barred. 

Section 1. Boxing shoes having spikes or cleats shall be 
barred. 

RULE V. 
Two classes. 

Section 1. Boxing contests or exhibitions shall be divided 
into classes : 
Trained men are those — 

(a) Matches between "trained men" who have won elimina- 
tion company championships. 

Novice men are those — 

(&) Matches or contests between novice boxers. 

Note. — All contestants who have not qualified in elimina- 
tion company boxing championships shall be regarded as 
novice boxers. 

RULE VI. 

Number and time limit of bouts and rounds for trained men. 

Section 1. A boxing contest or exhibition between " trained 
men '* shall be limited to four rounds. A round shall be of two 
minutes' duration with an intermission of one minute between 
rounds for rest. If the judges disagree at the expiration of four 
rounds, the referee may at his discretion call for a fifth round, 
which shall also be limited to two minutes. 

For novice men. 

Sec. 2. A boxing contest or exhibition between " novice 
boxers " shall be subject to the same rulings. 

Divisional championships. 

Sec. 3. The final bouts in divisional championships shall be 
six rounds, three minutes each, and no extra round can be 
ordered. 



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RULE VII. 

OFFICIALS AND DUTIES OF OFFICIALS. 

Officials. 

Section 1. The officials shall be a referee, two judges, two 
clerks, one timekeeper, and one medical officer. 

Note. — It can not be too strongly emphasized that the 
referee and Judges of a contest should not be connected in 
any way with either of the organizations represented, and 
that they should be thoroughly competent and impartial. 
Duties of referee — Decision of judges final. 

Sec. 2. The referee shall have general supervision over the 
match or contest, and shall take his position within the ring. 
The primary duty of the referee shall be the strict enforcement 
of the rules of boxing and of fair play. The referee shall, at the 
conclusion of the bout, abide by the decision of the judges in 
every case, if both agree. 

Sec 3. The referee shall have the power : 
Power of referee to give deciding vote. 

(a) To cast the deciding vote when the judges disagree. 
To order extra round. 

(&) In competitions (not exhibitions) to order an extra 
round, limited to duration of preceding rounds, if the judges 
disagree, and he himself is in doubt as to the decision. 
May stop contest. 

(c) To Stop a bout or contest at any stage and make a decision 
if he considers it too one-sided. 

To disqualify. 

(d) To stop a bout or contest if he considers the competitors 
are not in earnest. In this case he will disqualify one or both 
contestants. 

Note. — He may first give one warning to the contestants, 
deducting from the round the time lost in so doing. Not 
more than one warning shall be given. 
Disqualification without warning. 

(e) To disqualify a contestant with or without previous warn- 
ing for committing any one of the fouls noted in Rule XIV. 
Shall not touch contesting boxers except. 

Sec. 4. The referee shall not touch the contesting boxers ex- 
cept in special cases, such as: 

(a) Failure of one or both contestants to obey '' break " com- 
mand. 

(&) To assist injured contestant. 



9 

Introduction handshaking. 

Sec. 5. The referee shall insist on all boxers shaking hands at 
the commencement of the first and last round. No other demon- 
stration shall be allowed. 
Announcer. 

KoTE. — ^The referee may be assisted by an announcer, 
whose duty shall be to announce the names of all contest- 
ants and act as a go-between between the referee and the 
judges. 
Position of judges. 

Sec. 6. The two Judges shall be stationed at opposite sides of 
the ring, preferably on a level with the boxers. 
Duty of judges. 

Sec. 7. It shall be the duty of the judges to watch every phase 
of the bout and to make a decision. 
Method of scoring. 

Sec. 8. The judges shall keep count of the rounds, time out, 
and " downs," and generally cooperate with the referee. 
Clerk assistants to judges. 

Sec. 9. Each judge shall be assisted by a clerk of his own 
choice. 
Duty of clerk. 

Sec. 10. It shall be the duty of each clerk to keep a clerical 
count of the score of both contestants throughout the round and 
bout, as dictated to him by the judge during the progress of the 
bout. 

(a) The clerk shall submit to the judge the point summary 
immediately at the conclusion of each round. 

( & ) He shall notify the judge at any stage of the round if one 
contestant leads an opponent by the maximum of 20 points. 

Note. — This service by a clerk will enable each judge to 
give his undivided attention to the progress of the bout. 
Duties of timekeeper. 

Sec. 11. The timekeeper must be seated close to and outside 
of the ring. 
Two watches. 

Note. — It is advisable for a timekeeper to have two 
watches at his disposal. 
Commencement and termination of rounds. 

Sec. 12. He shall indicate the beginning and end of each round. 
Timer's equipment. 

Note. — It is recommended that the timekeeper have at 
his disposal a bell, gong, or whistle with which to indicate 
these periods. 



10 

Duties of medical officer. 

Sec. 13. The medical officer shall always be in attendance at 
each meeting held under these rules. 

(a) It shall be his duty to decide whether hand bandages are 
necessary, and to inspect same. 

(&) To supervise the physical condition of contestants. 

RULE VIII. 

Medical examination. 

Section 1. Contestants shall present themselves promptly to 
the camp boxing instructor or proper person appointed by him 
at the time appointed for medical examination and weighing-in, 
Weighing-in, 

Note. — Weighing-in shall take place within an hour of 
bout. 
Drawing. 

Sec. 2. Tournaments having a large number of entries shall 
be governed by the Bagnall- Wilde system of drawing. 

Note. — For further information see attached memo- 
randum. 

RULE IX. 
Seconds. 

Section 1. Each contestant shall be assisted by two seconds. 
"Warning to seconds. 

Sec. 2. The seconds must not speak, signal, or in any way 
coach their principals during the progress of a round, nor may 
they claim time, or indicate in any way decisions for them. 

Sec. 3. Any violation of the above provisions may render a 
principal liable to disqualification by the referee. 
Limitations of seconds. 

Sec. 4. The seconds must remain seated during the contests, 
and shall not enter the ring until the timer indicates the termina- 
tion of a round. They shall leave the ring promptly when time 
is called at the beginning of a round. 

RULE X. 

SC9EING. 
Maximum of 20 points. • v ** 

Section 1. A maximum of 20 points shall be allotted to each 
round of the contest. 

Note. — This maximum should not be exceeded in any 
case, for in the ordinary course of events if one boxer 
leads by a greater number of points than allotted for the 
round, it usually means that the fight is one-sided and 
should be stopped. 



11 

RULE XI. 

POINT ALLOTMENT. 

Point allotment, 14 points for — 

Section 1. Fourteen points shall be given far attack and de- 
fense. 

Attack. 

Sec. 2. Attack shall cover the following points : 

(a) Clean hits. 

(&) Aggressive action. 

(c) Well-delivered partial hits. 

Defense. 
Sec. 3. Defense shall cover : 
(a) Blocking. 

( & ) Making opponent miss, 
(c) Balance and readiness to counter-attack. 

Four points for generalship. 
Sec. 4. Four points shall be given for generalship. 

Generalship. 

1>^0TE. — When the points are otherwise equal, the decision 
should be in favor of the boxer who displays the best ag- 
gressive generalship and style. The term " generalship " 
shall indicate the development of natural advantages, 
coupled with Intuition and the ability to grasp quickly the 
advantage of any opening given by an opponent. 

Two points for aggressiveness. 
Sec. 5. Two points shall be given for ** aggressiveness." 

Note. — Indicating willingness of contestant to consistently 
press aggressively forward in the face of punishment. 

Points deducted for all infractions of rules. 

Sec. 6. Points or fractions of points shall be deducted for all 
infractions of rules. Note Rule XII. 

Note. — It is essential that the allotting of points shall be 
dictated to the clerk immediately. The system of mentally 
allotting points will leave an opening for indefinite decision 
and is generally unsatisfactory. 

Method of naming winner. 

Sec. 7. At the end of each contest the judges' clerks shall 
write or othej'wise indicate to their judge the score of each 
contestant. 



12 

RULE XII. 

Points deducted for — 

Section 1. Points will be deducted for: 

(a) Stalling; i. e., prolonging contests, lack of earnestness, or 
going down without being hit 

(&) Covering up with hands so that contestant is not in a 
position to hit. 

(c) Clinching. 

id) Hitting while holding opponent. 

Jie) For all infractions of rules, minor or major (whether in- 
dicated or overlooked by the referee). 

RULE XIII. 

WEIGHTS. 

Section 1. Competitions in all championships will be held in 
the following weights and classes: 

Weight and classes. 

Pounds. 

Bantam weight .__ 115 

Featherweight 125 

Lightweight _,. ; 135 

Welter weight 145 

Middleweight 160 

Light heavyweight 175 

Heavy, all over 175 

Weight rule governing all bouts. 

Sec. 2. No contestant shall give or take more than 5 pounds 
when contestants weigh less than 135 pounds. 

Sec. 3. No contestant shall give or take more than 10 pounds 
when contestants weigh in excess of 135 pounds, except when 
both contestants weigh over 175 pounds. 

Note. — T!ie above rule shall apply to all boxing contests 
and exhibitions. 

RULE XIV. 

FOULS. 

Fouls. 

Section 1. Hitting below the belt. 

Sec. 2. Hitting an opponent who is down or who is getting xtp 
after being down. 



13 

Sec 3, Holding an opponent or deliberately maintaining a 
clinch. 

Sec. 4. Holding an opponent with one hand and hitting with 
the other hand. 

Sec. 5. Pushing or butting with the head or shoulder or using 
ti,^ knee. 

Sec. 6. Hitting with Inside or butt of the hand, the wrist, or 
elbow. 

Sec. 7. Hitting or " flicking " with the open glove. 

Sec. 8. Wrestling or roughing at the ropes. 

Sec. 9. Going down without being hit. 

Sec. 10. Striking deliberately at that part of the body over 
the kidneys. 

Sec. 11. The use of abusive or insulting language. 

Added fouls. 

Sec. 12. The failure to obey the referee or any physical actions 
which may injure a contestant, except by fair sportsmanlike 
boxing, shall also be judged as fouls. 

Recommendations to referee and judges on fouls. 

Note. — (a) It is recommended that the referee shall imme- 
diately disqualify a contestant who is guilty of a deliberate 
and willful foul, and award the decision to his opponent. 
It is also recommended that a referee shall not give more 
than one warning for a foul, which, although committed un- 
intentionally, is likely to incapacitate an opponent, i. e., 
butting or hitting below the belt, and shall disqualify 
offender without warning in case of actual injury. In cases 
of minor fouls, such as hitting with open glove, clinching, or 
prolonging contest after fair warning has been given by the 
referee, he shall have the option of awarding the decision 
to the opponent. 

Point penalties. 

Note. — (&) Judges shall penalize contestants in points 
for infraction of all rules — major or minor. 

RULE XV. 



" Down.*' 

Section 1. A contestant shall be deemed " down " when : 
(a) Any part of his body other than his feet is on the ring 

floor. 



14 

(&) He is hanging helplessly over the ropes, 
(c) Rising from " down " position. 

Note. — (a) A contestant may go down throiigh accident 
or weakness, but must rise instantly unless sent down by 
a blow, in which case he may remain down until the count 
of " nine " without being disqualified. 

Note.— (&) A boxer hanging on the ropes is not officially 
" down " until so pronounced by the referee, who can 
either stop the bout or count the boxer out on ropes or floor. 
Rule for contestant when opponent is down. 

Sec. 2. When a contestant is " down " his opponent shall retire 
out of striking distance, and shall not resume boxing until or- 
dered to do so by the referee. 

RULE XVI. 
Bout over when. 

Section 1. The round and bout shall be terminated when 
" down " contestant fails to resume boxing at the expiration of 10 
seconds, and referee announces decision. 
Ten seconds indicated by referee. 

Sec. 2. The 10 seconds shall be counted aloud, and the expi- 
ration of each second shall be definitely indicated by the referee, 

RULE XVII. 
Other questions arising. 

Section 1. In the event of any question arising not provided 
for in these rules the referee shall have full power to decide 
such questions, and his decision shall be final. 



METHOD OF MAKING THE DRAW. 

ILLUSTRATING THE BAGNALL WILD SYSTEM. 



Difficulty sometimes arises in making the drawings for a large 
number of contestants in a boxing tournament. The following 
system, known as the B agnail- Wild, has been used success- 
fully for years in tennis and golf tournaments and is adapted 
to boxing contests. 

This system is designed to eliminate the byes in the second 
round and to bring the contestants together in a predetermined 
number of rounds and ultimately redvice them to one contestant 
by retiring the competitors beaten in each round. 

When the number of competitors is not a power of 2, there 
shall be byes in the second round. The number of byes shall be 
equal to the difference between the number of competitors and 
the next higher power of 2, and the number of pairs that shall 
meet in the first round shall be equal to the difference between 
the number of competitors and the next lower power of 2. The 
byes, if even in number, shall be divided, as the names are 
drawn, in equal proportions at the top and bottom of the list 
above and below the pairs, the first at the bottom, next at the 
top, and so on. The byes are drawn first. If uneven in number 
there shall be one more bye at the bottom than at the top. 

In preparing to make the draw the number of entries are 
counted. If the total is 2, or a power of 2 — 4, 8, 16, 32, or 64 — 
there are no byes, and the names are entered on the draw sheet 
in the order in which they are drawn. If the total is not 2, or 
a power of 2, there are byes, and the Bagnall-Wild method of 
drawing is resorted to ; and this means nearly always, for the 
entries rarely total a power of 2. 

The rules provide that the names of the competitors shall be 
placed in a bowl or hat and drawn out at random. 

The drawing diagram below will illustrate the application of 
the Bagnall-Wild system to a boxing tournament entry list, 
having an uneven number of entries. In this instance there are 

(15) 



16 

23 entries. The next lower power of 2 is 16. The difference 
between 23 and 16 equals 7, which constitutes the number of 
bouts in the first round. The next higher power of 2 is 32. 
The difference between 32 and 23 (the number of entries) equals 
9, constituting the number of byes. As 9 is an uneven number, 
4 are placed above and 5 below. The scheme is bulletined as 
follows: 




=^ — \ 




First round. Second round. Third round. Semifinals. Finals. 



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